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eMOLT Update 2024-06-21
Weekly Recap
This week, the eMOLT fleet recorded 76 tows of sensorized fishing
gear.
Things are definitely warming up out there. Up in the Gulf of Maine,
bottom temps remain in the mid 40s, but surface temps off the Mid-Coast
are up into the low 50s.

On the shelf south of New England, bottom temps are in the mid-50s
and surface temps are up into the mid-60s. The same was true south of
Long Island, although moving further west, surface temperatures started
to drop closer to 60 and bottom temperatures dropped into the upper 40s
and low 50s.
Next week, we’ll be working with fixed gear boats on the South Shore
and Cape Cod to start deploying Dissolved Oxygen sensors for the summer
season.
Thin shelled clams
For those of you involved in the surfclam / ocean quahog fishery, if
you run into any sets of clams with brittle shells, please consider
sharing the location and some samples with Dr. Daphne Munroe and her
team at Rutgers University. They are researching shell strength of these
animals and how it relates to environmental conditions. Dr. Munroe’s lab
can cover the cost of shipping frozen clams to their lab. Please reach
out to George or Dr. Munroe (dmunroe@hsrl.rutgers.edu) directly for more
information.
Gliders
In case people are interested, another source of in-situ data for the
Mid Atlantic is available through the Rutgers University Center for
Ocean Observing Leadership. They currently have two gliders deployed on
the shelf east of New Jersey. You can see their tracks here. You can
also see glider measurements of oxygen, temperature, salinity,
chlorophyll a and more here
and here.
Click on the plots to make them bigger.
System Hardware Upgrade List
The following vessels remain on our list for hardware upgrades. If
you aren’t on the list and think you should be, please reach out.
- F/V Brooke C *
- F/V Devocean
- F/V Excalibur
- F/V Kaitlyn Victoria
- F/V Kyler C
- F/V Linda Marie
- F/V Nathaniel Lee *
- F/V Noella C
- F/V Resolve
- F/V Sao Paulo
- F/V Sea Watcher I
- F/V Tom Slaughter
- F/V Virginia Marie
- F/V Virginia Marise
Bottom Temperature Forecasts
Doppio
Doppio comparisons are back this week. The forecasts appear to be
performing well out on Georges, along the Maine coast, and south of Long
Island. However, Cape Cod Bay and the shelf break south of New England
presented some problems last week. Observations from Cape Cod Bay were
several degrees cooler than predicted, and observations from the shelf
break were several degrees warmer than predicted.


Northeast Coastal Ocean Forecast System


Announcements
The Woods Hole Science Stroll is taking place on August 10, 2024
in Woods Hole, MA from 10 am to 3 pm. Many of the labs in Woods Hole
will have hands on science exhibits and several research vessels will be
open for tours. The event is free and family friendly; you can learn
more here.
The Saltonstall
Kennedy Grant Competition is open until July 23, 2024 with a maximum
award amount of $500,000.
NOAA Fisheries is accepting public comment on the updated
“Ecosystem Based Fisheries Management Road Map” until July 31, 2024. The
Road Map can be downloaded here
and comments can be sent to nmfs.ebfm.roadmap@noaa.gov
On April 30, 2024, BOEM announced its proposal for a first
offshore wind energy auction in the Gulf of Maine and an accompanying a
60-day public comment period (comments due by July 1, 2024). Public
comments can be submitted here.
Further information about the energy auction as well as in-person and
virtual public hearing scheduled for May and June of 2024 can be found
here.
All the best,
-George and JiM
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